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Without humans, pumpkins may have gone extinct
- terse_malvolio 6y agoTLDR: the species eating bitter pumpkin varieties went extinct, limiting the spread of seeds by mamal poop, in turn causing bitter pumpkins to go extinct. Humans helped by breeding domesticated varieties. The timeline given is on the tens of thousands of years so don't feel too proud yet. I really hoped it was shorter given this was posted near Halloween and Thanksgiving. And with the nonsensical pumpkin mutilation traditions having the positive unintended side effect of saving the pumpkin. Regadless: Could we invent more seemingly nonsensical traditions that have a long-term ecological impact?